Comments on political violence, terrorism, small wars, etc.

Indonesia

Marines return to Sangin to advise Afghan National Army in combat operations (Department of Defense photo)

Welcome to your Situation Update, a regular feature from Insurgentsia that covers irregular war and runs weekday mornings.

The weather forecast this morning is cloudy with a 30% chance of you skipping over the weather forecast to get to the main content. I hope that helps you wherever you are located as you read this.

The Department of Defense chose the ninth general to run the war in Afghanistan. Lt. Gen. Scott Miller comes from Joint Special Operations Command and will take over the war as it enters its 18th year this fall. Outgoing Gen. Nicholson visited Farah, the city that was overrun by the Taliban last week. Nicholson boasted with the Afghan defense minister that the time it took for Afghan and coalition forces to react to Taliban fighters (overrunning the city, killing Afghan security forces, and laughing and joking while strolling in the streets) represented progress.

Israel claimed to be the first country to use the F-35 in combat in remarks to local media. “We are flying the F-35 all over the Middle East and have already attacked twice on two different fronts,” the Israel air force chief said. The most advanced fighters in the world are flying in the Middle East as foreign powers fight a proxy war in Syria. Last winter, Russian Su-57s were spotted in Syria. American F-35s and F-22s are also in the area of operations.

Iraq sentenced a Belgian to death for being a member of Islamic State in a 10 minute hearing. The Belgian appeared in an IS video threatening Europe. So far, Iraqi courts have sentenced 300 members of IS to death including 100 foreigners. Some sentenced to death were wives of IS fighters with small children.

Turkey sentenced coup planners to life in court on Monday. 106 people involved in the 2016 failed coup received maximum sentences under Turkish law. Most evidence against them was from two participants who turned state’s witness for reduced sentences.

Indonesian police killed 14 suspected terrorists and arrested dozens more in raids following suicide bombings last week. Those killed were people who “resisted,” said the police chief.

An unclaimed bombing killed 16 people in Afghanistantoday. The bombing occurred in Kandahar, a province known for its heavy Taliban presence.

Your baby powder could be funding Islamic State in Afghanistan (IS-K) said advocacy group Global Witness in a new report. IS-K is illegally operating talc mines that is exported and makes its way to the United States and Europe.

This concludes your Situation Update. Questions may be asked in the comments section and answers will be unhelpful. To receive these updates in your inbox, use the follow button on the sidebar (web) or below (mobile).

Like this article? Share it!

Like this:

Welcome to your Situation Update, a regular feature from Insurgentsia that covers irregular war and runs weekday mornings.

The weather forecast this morning is sunny with a 20% chance of emotional reasoning. I hope that helps you wherever you are located as you read this.

Most of the Palestinians killed by Israel were Hamas said a senior Hamas official to a Palestinian news organization. Hamas is an Islamist political party that runs Gaza and includes a militant wing whose mission is to destroy Israel. Another spokesperson for Hamas said that they were paying for the funerals of 50 of the killed whether they were Hamas or not. A third Hamas official said it is “natural to see members or supporters of Hamas in large numbers” at protests like the one at the border fence and that those killed were protesting peacefully. Human rights groups say it is irrelevant if those killed were affiliated with Hamas if they were killed while unarmed and not posing a threat to Israeli security forces.

Election-related violence continued in Iraqi Kurdistan yesterday according to the chief of the electoral commission. Several polling stations in Kirkuk were under threat of armed men to change the election results. “The employees of the commission are in a hostage situation,” said the chief.

Islamic State, diminished in Iraq in Syria, is still active in other parts of the world. The Wall Street Journal published an overview of all the places militant groups aligned with IS are still operating including Afghanistan and West Africa.

There is good news in Afghanistan according to a corrected Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) report that showed Afghan troop decline is not as bad as once thought. Okay, I lied. It’s not good news. SIGAR said the corrected numbers still show a “sharp decline,” just not quite as sharp as before.

India declared a Ramadan ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir, the first one in 18 years. Indian forces occupy Jammu and Kashmir and are engaged in continuing operations against Muslim separatists there. Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistan-based separatist group, called the cease-fire a “sin” and will not honor it.

Islamic State claimed the attack on Indonesian police yesterday by four men armed with swords.

This concludes your Situation Update. Questions may be asked in the comments section and answers will be given only if they paint the author in a good light. To receive these updates in your inbox, use the follow button on the sidebar (web) or below (mobile).

Like this article? Share it!

Like this:

Welcome to your Situation Update, an evidently irregular feature from Insurgentsia that covers irregular war and runs weekday mornings.

The weather forecast this morning is hot with an 80% chance of making it through this, because look how far you’ve already come. I hope that helps you wherever you are located as you read this.

Israeli troops killed dozens of Palestinians today in Gaza as protesters approached the fence separating Gaza from Israel. Gaza is occupied by the Israeli Defense Forces who control both the airspace and territorial waters of Gaza. Protests at the barrier have been going on for several weeks, but today the protests grew in size in response to the American announcement that it will move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem (considered the capital of both the Israelis and Palestinians). Associated Press reported at the time of publishing that 52 Palestinians were killed by the Israelis and more than 1,200 injured. The IDF reported that some Palestinians were armed, but no evidence has been provided.

The US successfully exported American-style democracy to Iraq apparently, since the turnout in Iraq’s elections was 44.5% — less than a typical US presidential election, but much more than a typical midterm. The winner appears to be Muqtada al-Sadr, a Shiite cleric who led an insurgent militia against the American occupation.

Three church bombings in Indonesia were a family affair say police. The three separate bombings on Sunday morning were perpetrated by a father, mother, and their four young children.

A bomb was found at a South African mosque today just three days after the mosque was attacked my armed men.

Hezbollah confirmed they launched missiles at Israeli-occupied Golan Heights from Syria in a statement from the leader of the group, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. The missile attack marked a “new phase” in the Syrian war, said Nazrallah.

On-again, off-again American ally Turkey says the U.S. and Israel are partners in crime against humanity according to the Prime Minister in a statement to reporters in Ankara.

This concludes your Situation Update. Questions have never been asked, so I wouldn’t know what to do with them. To receive these updates in your inbox, use the follow button on the sidebar (web) or below (mobile).